American English

How to pronounce percent

nounA2Very common word
perSEHNT

/pʰɚˈsɛnt̚/

2 syllables · Stress the second syllable.

a number or amount measured out of 100

Practice out loud

Meanings & examples

noun

a number or amount measured out of 100

Twenty percent of the students walk to school.

The store raised the price by five percent.

Good to know

Use percent after a number: 20 percent. Use percentage for a general amount: a high percentage of voters.

Common phrases & grammar

a 10 percent increase · a 20 percent discount · a 50 percent chance · percent of the population

[number] percent of + noun

verb + by + [number] percent

Useful expressions

percent off

a discount of the stated amount

These jackets are 40 percent off.

percent sign

the symbol %

Put a percent sign after the number.

Related words & forms